TAD2201*

Critical issues in design 2A

6 points - 3 hours lecture/tutorial and 9 independent study hours per week - First semester - Caulfield - Prerequisites: TAD1101 and TAD1102 - Elective

Objectives On successful completion of this subject, students should be equipped freely to investigate the history of certain goods from pre-industrial times and appreciate the extent to which they remain embedded in contemporary objects of household use; be able to cultivate practical skills and the ambition to interpret the function and meaning of consumer products; enjoy talking and writing ambitiously and imaginatively about the relationship which people have with items of product design, the experiences they are likely to have and the emotional 'life' of ordinary objects; possess a critical language for the evaluation of the looks, the ecological and the ethical advantages and disadvantages of household items, and be able to use this critical language aptly and for the sake of curiosity rather than rhetorical purposes; identify the characteristics of certain objects of design which seize the public imagination and make them conversation pieces.

Synopsis The subject explores the contents of our department stores. Product design from local and international manufacturers are analysed through advertising and imaginary narratives of their use. The looks and the ecological and the ethical dimensions of such objects are discussed in a critical and spirit for the sake of curiosity; but, as judgements in design are inherently a matter of opinion, there is abundant scope for the vision of the critic to use an essayistic - or even satirical - tenor to express persuasively his or her intuitions. The subject is essentially concerned with the imagination which a practical philosopher might bring to the critical study of product design; it does not resile from subjective evocations of objects, even when underwritten with the authority of sophisticated technology and massive capital investment. Rather than cultivate strict objectivity and disinterested inquiry, the subject encourages the design critic to take up an 'interested' position which is necessary for the creation of visionary designs of consumer goods.

Assessment Two essays or class presentations supplemented, where appropriate, with written notes: 40% and 60% respectively

Recommended texts

Dormer P The meanings of modern design Thames and Hudson, 1991
Forty A Objects of desire Thames and Hudson, 1986
Nelson R Expressions of purpose in Australian design Monash University, 1992
Nelson R Cultural hypochondria in the age of industrial design Monash University, 1992
Shields R Lifestyle shopping: The subject of consumption Routledge, 1992

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